2000 post-Disney fun - Long

[ransam]

Ok, 2000th post.
I love Disney. I love everything about it, the movies, the parks, the man himself.
For my 2000th post, I wanted to post something that I send to my friends who are going to Disney and ask me for advice.
This is part of what I send. It's actually much longer.
I wanted to get a discussion of the cool things about Disney, things to look for, things to make your visit cool. I hope everyone adds. To me the coolest thing about Disney is the details. so here it is.

1. Don’t worry about seeing everything, you won’t. I’ve been there too many times to count and I haven’t seen it all. Do some research on line and find out what you want to definitely see and make sure you see it, the rest will take care of itself.
2. Eat lunch at the Pinocchio restaurant in MK. It counts as a counter service meal. Sit by the window by Small World and wave. I love waving to the people on the ride, and they wave back.
3. Designate a specific meeting place in case you get lost from your children and others, and/or wife and kids. . Disney is big and crowded, and it’s easy to lose one another. (Don’t say we’ll meet in front of the castle, the area in front of the castle is huge and crowded. Pick a specific spot….a bench, the entrance to a store. Etc..)
4. Sometimes at night (when it just gets dark), your hotel will have a pool movie night. It’s cool to get a floatation device and watch a movie. Nice way to unwind after a long night. Ask the front desk.
5. Fast pass is your friend, use it.
6. Don’t be afraid to let your child get her/his way. If she/he doesn’t want to go on a ride, try to get them to, but if they insist or cry, maybe it’s better not to fight w/ them..That will just put you in a bad mood and them in a bad mood, and no one wins Let them go on the rides they want, and skip the ones they don’t want to go on. …Mark, I’m not a parent, so I don’t’ know..But I have noticed when I’ve taken kids, if you let them get their way usually they want to ride it later when they get more relaxed….
7. have fun
8. The resort mugs are a good thing to take to the park w/ you. You can buy them at the hotel you stay in. you get unlimited drinks at your hotel… .You can take them to the park w/ you….then during the day you fill it w/ water and ice and you keep from getting dehydrated.
9. The most awesome thing about Disney is how it treats every kid as an adult and adults can be kids. Be a kid, be silly, and be stupid, it’s fun. Buy a mickey hat and wear it. Laugh.
10. Ask a cast member for directions and notice how they will point w/ two fingers instead of one. They will never point w/ 1 finger. That is a customer service item instilled by Walt himself
11. Go to the Lunch w/ the Imaginer if you can. It’s great and a great lunch as well.
12. Use suntan lotion and bug spray, don’t ruin your vacation by being bit or sunburned.
13. Since you are staying on property, Naps are always good. Go back to your hotel…swim if it’s hot….take an hour nap and then shower and be refreshed. You’ll enjoy your trip more in smaller doses when you’re feeling good, than if you stay at the park and are tired.
14. Don’t be afraid to separate. If you see something you want to explore more and your children do not want to, make a deal w/ your wife to take the kids for an hour and let you do what you want, and you can do the same for her
15. Stay cool. Drink lots of water. Use the shows that are air conditioned to keep out of the sun.
16. Don’t worry about getting wet, you will…..splash mountain, many other rides have water involved. Don’t worry about it, you’ll dry off fast.
17. If it rains go to the park anyway. Take a poncho if you want. It never rains for long….when it rains, take in a show….shop.
18. The shops on Main Street stay open long after closing…..shop then…it’s crowded, but dies down after a while. It’s always fun to spend the day at the park, and then as you leave, when the park closes.... you can shop then.
19. Disney can and will get cool at night, and during the fall and winter, it can get really cold at night. Take a sweater.
20. Get to the fireworks at MK early. The Making Memories show on the castle is just breath taking.
21. If you can book breakfasts. It will get you into the park early and when it’s not crowded. Great for taking pics.
22. At the Muppet show, there is a sign at the entrance that says it’s gone but will back, key is under mat. Look under mat, there is a key there.
23. You can never, ever, take too many pictures. You can only take too few.
24. Fun fact. The reason you have to park across the Seven Seas Lagoon and take a ferry or monorail to get to the Magic Kingdom is; because Walt Disney wanted you to leave your everyday rush and daily life and step into relaxation, fun, and magic. You can’t drive and walk yourself into that world something else must take you across the water to get to it. Unless of course you are staying at the contemporary and walk.
25. There are not stuffed animals at Disneyworld. They are all “plushed”, if an animal is “stuffed” then that mean s it’s dead, and nothing in Disney is dead. Just another little detail at Disney that I love.
26. Notice there is no ashtrays in Magic Kingdom, Mickey doesn’t smoke.
27. At epcot make sure you stop at club cool for some free samples of soft drinks. Don’t miss the Italian one; I think it’s called Beverly. Yummy.
28. "Singing In the Rain" It is attached to a street light in the Streets of America section; not on the main street but on one of the cross streets, I think on the right hand side if you're standing at the Lights, Motor, Action show end of the street. Anyways, there's a pad that you stand on, and when you hold the umbrella handle, it starts raining!
29. Take batteries. Very expensive at Disney
30. Pull the rope out front of Indiana Jones

31. Devine at Animal Kingdom is really cool. See if you can find her. Eli loved it.
32. Look in front of Tony's for the Lady & The Tramp heart in the concrete sidewalk.
33. At the Muppet Studio Store in HS look up. (I’ve been there many times and didn’t notice it until last visit) there is a replica of the Muppet Loneliness hotel. The detail Disney shows always amazes me. And it is so cool. Look closely at the clothes line. See if you can find Mickey’s shorts. Other little things are fun as well.
34. If you go to Liberty Square to see Hall of Presidents…notice that all the buildings have rope on the doors and windows…. Back then there were not nails, everything was held together w/ rope.
35. If you see a little girl in a princess outfit notice many employees will bow to her. IF you see a girl dressed as Wendy, Tinkerbelle, Alice, Mary Poppins, they will nod but not bow. You only bow to princesses. I love the details Disney provides.
36. When you’re waiting in line for a picture w/ a character, ask a cast member “man does it get hot in that costume”? the cast member will look at you and say “what costume”… I know it’s geeky, but I love doing that. Lol.
37. All the windows on mainstreet are named after imaginers, Walt’s family, etc…
38. The dead Bonsai Tree that comes to life in Japan over by the candy lady. It seems to come to life at random
39. The Phone Booths in England work! use your imagination with your group as you pass by!! The numbers are Right Booth 407-827-9861, Left Booth 407-827-9862, Center Booth 407-827-9863. You can call them right now and whoever is there will pick up….OR….you can give the number to a relative or me, and they can call them and have one of your kids answer. Very cool. (I’m not sure if this still works.)

[Terra]

Love it!!!!

And agree!

I can't wait to get away for a few hours next week for the F&W festival!!!!

[TheVBs]

Great advice! I think it's good for people who aren't first timers to remind themselves of these things as well.

[EeyoresBestFriend]

I totally agree with you. Fabulous tips!

These are the details that makes Disneyworld so magical! It so unfortunate that a lot of folks only see it as a theme park to run through as quickly as possible from ride to ride.

And that is also what makes us true Mouseketeers!

[DisneyDadfromPittsburgh]

Nice job and congrats!

[ransam]

I've said this before but i'll repeat, the most important thing to remember (assuming you have done all the planning), is to buy into the magic. buy silly hats, take goofy pictures, don't be uptight, be flexible, laugh a lot. have fun.

[natedog24]

Great advice all around!!
Unfortunately, the Epcot Phone Booths no longer take incoming calls. Apparently a few bad apples ruined the fun for everyone...

[Terra]

Great advice all around!!
Unfortunately, the Epcot Phone Booths no longer take incoming calls. Apparently a few bad apples ruined the fun for everyone...

Awww, what?? I hadn't heard that What happened?

[ransam]

That's too bad about the phone booths. we have a guy where I used to work, and he could do great impression of almost all the Disney characters. Often when friends or family went I would arrange a time to call. Then when they picked up the phone they would hand it to the kids and say it's for you. And the kids would be up and talk to the Disney characters. and always seem to be kind of cool

[natedog24]

Awww, what?? I hadn't heard that What happened?

Basically, some people would call up the phone booths and pretend to be Disney's "Prize Patrol" (or something similar) and the unsuspecting guest that answered the phone would believe that and do whatever the person on the other end would tell them (go to MK to claim your prize, for example). This led to confused CMs and angry guests. I heard many stories from CM friends, and none of them will make you feel good.

So solve the problem, WDW just made the phones so they couldn't accept incoming phone calls. It's sad really, because that was always fun for us that were "in the know"....